Wednesday, November 10, 2010

I could have just Googled a pumpkin bread recipe. I'm sure there are hundreds of excellent ones, tested and retested, right there for the taking. But I didn't, because I had something better, a theory. Theoretically speaking, there is nothing better than a good theory.

My theory was that if I took my banana bread recipe, which is one of my absolute favorites, and used pumpkin puree in place of the mashed, ripe bananas, I would have an equally impressive loaf.

So, what were the results of this grand pumpkin bread experiment? A very decent loaf of quick bread, which would make a handsome addition to any holiday dessert table! Having said that, next time I make it, I will be tweaking some things.

This was very good, but didn't have the I-can't-stop-eating-this-ness of the banana bread recipe. Considering the obvious fact that bananas and pumpkins are not the same thing, I will adjust the sweetness and fat content a bit to compensate.

Anyway, stay tuned for future updates, and if you happen to make any variations on this, I'd love to hear about it! Thanks, and enjoy!

I like your incorporation of Chinese 5-Spice powder, instead of the traditional nutmeg/clove/ginger. I'm totally stealing that idea.

Instead of butter I use 1/2 cup oil plus 1/3 cup water, plus 50% more sugar. When combined, the batter seems kind of loose, but yields a nice loaf that isn't overly moist or sticky.

You may want to try reducing or omitting the baking powder altogether, and adjusting the baking soda accordingly. Baking powder sometimes makes quickbreads too acidic, which can affect flavor and texture... just a thought.

I am trying this out right now! I left my butter in the microwave too long so my dough was a little on the liquidy side but it seems to be okay. I can't wait to take a bite out of it! Thanks for the recipe and continue to do what you do!

Out of curiosity, Chef John, what alterations would you make to this recipe? Would substituting half shortening in place of half the butter add enough of a fat content to get that richness of banana bread, do you think?

i made this yesterday. used 1/2 butter and 1/2 apple sauce... a great sub for butter/oil; used brown sugar instead of white. this makes a huge loaf. cooked for 70 mins but could have used 75... was a bit underdone... but still very yummy, thanks!

I am giving this a try today! I have Thanksgiving this weekend in Canada and I think this will be a great treat for it! And I have 2 banana breads in the oven as I type! Smells freaken awesome in here!

Based on your comment that it wasn't quite sweet enough, I tried subbing a ripe banana for half the pumpkin puree, but keeping everything else the same (kind of a hybrid banana/pumpkin bread). The result was good, but still not as sweet as it maybe should be. Next time I think I'll try adding another 1/2 C brown sugar to the hybrid version, or maybe sub all bs for reg sugar in the original recipe and see if the extra sweetness of the bs makes the difference. All in all, though, very good bread!

I made this last night and it turned out pretty well. I didn't have Chinese 5 Spice or Allspice, so I replaced both of those with the same amount of Pumpkin Pie Spice. Also did dark chocolate chips instead of walnuts. It turned out pretty well - very moist, but next time I think I will double the cinnamon since it doesn't stand out to me. I also spread this out between 2 smaller loaf pans (not the minis) rather than my one large loaf pan.